Need For Speed (2014)

Need For Speed Synopsis

DreamWorks Pictures’ Need for Speed marks an exciting return to the great car culture films of the 1960s and ’70s, when the authenticity of the world brought a new level of intensity to the action on-screen. Tapping into what makes the American myth of the open road so appealing, the story chronicles a near-impossible cross-country journey for our heroes — one that begins as a mission for revenge, but proves to be one of redemption. Based on the most successful racing video game franchise ever with over 140 million copies sold, Need for Speed captures the freedom and excitement of the game in a real-world setting, while bringing to life the passion for the road that has made our love of cars so timeless.

The film centers around Tobey Marshall (Aaron Paul), a blue-collar mechanic who races muscle cars on the side in an unsanctioned street-racing circuit. Struggling to keep his family-owned garage afloat, he reluctantly partners with the wealthy and arrogant ex-NASCAR driver Dino Brewster (Dominic Cooper). But just as a major sale to car broker Julia Maddon (Imogen Poots) looks like it will save Tobey's shop, a disastrous race allows Dino to frame Tobey for a crime he didn’t commit, and sending Tobey to prison while Dino expands his business out West.

Two years later, Tobey is released and set on revenge — but he knows his only chance to take down his rival Dino is to defeat him in the high-stakes race known as De Leon — the Super Bowl of underground racing. However to get there in time, Tobey will have to run a high-octane, action-packed gauntlet that includes dodging pursuing cops coast-to-coast as well as contending with a dangerous bounty Dino has put out on his car. With the help of his loyal crew and the surprisingly resourceful Julia, Tobey defies odds at every turn and proves that even in the flashy world of exotic supercars, the underdog can still finish first.

Here on Cinema Blend, we've spent a good chunk of the past month celebrating the best in cinema that 2014 had to offer, but now we're going to switch gears and talk about the opposite side of the quality scale. But rather than slamming these titles ourselves, the following video allows those less-than-great features to slam themselves.

Last weekend animated feature Mr. Peabody & Sherman took a distant second place to 300: Rise of An Empire, but fortunes were switched this week. Rise fell almost 60%, banking just $19 million for second place while Mr. Peabody & Sherman slipped only 35%, earning $21 million and narrowly edging into the top spot.

Director Scott Waugh decided to make his adaptation of the long-running video game series Need For Speed a tribute to the classic car movies of the 1960s and 70s, and as a result, it’s truly thrilling to watch the vehicles move. Adding to the excitement is that the filmmaker had his stars do as much of their own driving and stunts as could be considered safe.

While Need For Speed was initially conceived as an adaptation of the long-running popular video game series, when director Scott Waugh took control of it he also changed the project into something else: an ode to the classic car movies of the 1960s and '70s.

Maybe you love the feeling of getting behind the wheel and just soaring, hitting the open road and letting the wind blow through your hair as you step on the gas and leave civilized culture behind. Or maybe you just like a good chase.

Director Steven Spielberg has quite a bit of sway over in the offices of DreamWorks, so when the studio started developing a film based on the video game Need For Speed and Spielberg decided that he wanted Aaron Paul to star, guess who ended up starring in Need For Speed?

Fresh off the Academy Awards and back into the swing of crappy, late winter movies. At least last Sunday we were reminded that Hollywood can put out quality work. Now just isn’t the time of year those movies see the light of day. This week we’ve got speed and single moms.

Considering seven separate categories, To 3D Or Not To 3D evaluates the full scope of the 3D viewing experience. Think of it as a consumer's guide for your movie-going, complete with a viewers poll where you can weigh in on how you plan to see Need For Speed.

Need for Speed is going to strike different audience members in different ways. Some adore the video game on which it is loosely based. Others just dial into the action-driven dramas that take place in and around sexy, stylish cars. (See the entire Fast & Furious franchise as the industry’s longest-running example.)

Amidst a sea of new commercials, a rocking halftime show and a football game, yesterday's Super Bowl broadcast also delivered some thrilling new TV spots for a handful of extremely anticipated movies. We were treated all the Michael Bayhem we could handle -- or all that could fit into a 34-second spot -- with the new Transformers: Age of Extinction trailer...

The Super Bowl spot for this revved up feature leans heavily on its cars. Which makes sense, because the game on which this movie is based was a car-racing thriller. And it’s a credit to F&F that we see automobiles hurling through the air and automatically thing about that franchise.

There's something almost too apt about filming a movie called Need for Speed in the Motor City. Detroit shaped American car culture, and remains defined by it; the city is ringed by massive sturdy highways, and even in pedestrian-friendly downtown, the giant towers of the GM headquarters are the tallest buildings in sight.

In the movie, Paul stars as Tobey Marshall, a street racer and garage owner who finds himself in a serious financial crisis. In order to try and solve his problems he puts his trust in an old associate (Dominic Cooper), but the decision turns out to blow up in his face as Tobey finds himself framed for murder.

Though the poster sells this as a pretty epic battle happening inside Aaron Paul’s arteries (the helicopter is a metaphor for congestion, you see), this is indeed based on the series of racing games by Electronic Arts.

The Fast & Furious franchise's longevity is a mark of movie-goers' interest in seeing fast cars go fast on the big screen, and it seems Need for Speed is racing in to follow those tracks by putting cars and street racing front and center in a story that — according to the new full-length trailer — involves honor, love and redemption. Also fast cars and incredible stunts. Because that’s the kind of thing you want to see accompanied by the roar of an engine, right?

A third-generation-stuntman who became a director with last year's Act of Valor, Scott Waugh knows his way around a stunt better than just about anyone, which makes him ballsy enough to hire an actor like two-time Emmy winner Aaron Paul, strap him into a stunt car, and let him drive 120 mph on camera.

Specifics on the plot are being kept under wraps at present, but THR has learned it is based on an original idea by Underworld: Awakening scribe John Hlavin. However, Hlavin hasn't written the screenplay for this nameless thriller. That honor went to Scott Rosenberg, who has penned such underappreciated gems as Con Air and Beautiful Girls.

On Sunday we'll finally learn the fate of Jesse Pinkman, who has been played so memorably all these years on Breaking Bad by Aaron Paul, and odds are it's not going to be a happy ending no matter what. But if you want a way to cope, just pretend that's Jesse outgunning the cops and kissing a pretty girl in this first trailer for Need for Speed, which debuted at Apple

Scripted by John and George Gatins and directed by Scott Waugh, the movie follows Tobey as he gets out of prison and seeks revenge against the person who framed him and got him locked up. In order to accomplish his mission he joins a cross country race, but encounters some serious players when his ex-partner puts a bounty on his head.

Need For Speed centers on a young street racer (Paul) who is released from prison and takes part in a cross-country race to try and get revenge against the wealthy businessman (Cooper) who framed him for a crime he didin't commit. And it doesn't help that the hero's former partner has also put a bounty on his head.

One might think an adaptation of one of the most popular racing video game franchises would come zooming into theaters as quickly as possible with its pedal to the metal – or with its fingers on the accelerator button, as it were – but Scott Waugh’s upcoming Need for Speed is playing it safe and taking the scenic route on the way to theaters

Based on the popular EA racing video game series, Need For Speed focuses on speed freak Tobey Marshall, who is a fan of ’70s-style, fast-paced cars. When his best friend is killed, Marshall kicks into gear on revenge, racing at insane speeds from New York City to Los Angeles to get it. Aaron Paul is fronting the film as Marshall, and Johnson has signed on to join the cast.

Thanks to an extended trailer that featured even more stunts, action and car racing than the Super Bowl spot (not to mention more Gina Carano vs. Michelle Rodriguez), Fast & Furious 6 has dominated a lot of attention today, but it's no longer the only big car-centric action movie on the block.

Scott "Kid Cudi' Mescudi's acting run got cut a bit short when HBO cancelled How To Make It In America, but he's been making his move into features as of late. He's set to make his big screen debut later this year with both Max Nichols' Two Night Stand and Denis Hennelly's Goodbye World and today he's added another title to his docket.

Just a few moments ago President Barack Obama was reelected for a second term as the President of the United States of America, and to celebrate we have news regarding the upcoming Need for Speed movie. Those two pieces of news exist on the same level, right?

The upcoming video game adaptation Need For Speed became a whole lot more interesting when it was announced earlier this month that Breaking Bad star Aaron Paul had signed to to front the movie as the lead, but now things are developing even more as the film has landed its female lead.

He's been busy these last few years winning Emmys and charming audiences with his performance as Jesse Pinkman on AMC's Breaking Bad, but Aaron Paul is slowly making his way toward being a legit movie star-- and now he's snagged a huge role that should help him get there. Paul has won the lead role in the upcoming DreamWorks feature Need for Speed

Liam Hemsworth doesn't really need a career boost right now. While his role as Gale Hawthorne in the first Hunger Games movie was pretty small, it gets a lot bigger in the sequels and he also has titles like Love and Honor, Empire State and Paranoia all completed and coming out soon. For that reason he probably isn't too crushed that his potential role in the upcoming Need For Speed movie probably won't happen.

Taylor Kitsch was poised for a major breakthrough this year as the star of not one but two major action tent pole productions, Disney's John Carter and Universal's Battleship. Ultimately, both proved majors letdowns for their respective studios, with John Carter losing a projected $200 million after print and advertising costs were factored in, and Battleship sinking for an estimated $150 million loss.

I’ve never seen the appeal of racing games. Where is the joy and/or strategy in driving around a fictional car? At least with NASCAR you get a real sense of speed and there are stakes for the driver. With driving games you fall off the Grand Canyon and are immediately resurrected back on the track.